28 Horror Movie Scenes That Are Visually Beautiful And Disturbing

If you close your eyes, you'll miss all the beauty!

We recently asked members of the BuzzFeed Community to tell us about their favorite visually stunning horror movie scenes, and they really delivered. Here are the disturbing yet eye-pleasing moments they shared with us:

Note: There are spoilers ahead. Some clips and GIFs also contain flashing lights.

1. "They're here," Poltergeist (1982)

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"It’s understated and all about atmosphere. The strobe effect of the old cathode-ray TV filling the parents' bedroom with a flickering gray light makes everything seem just a little off, especially when the only person moving and awake is the little girl. The white noise of the TV is cut by the little violin shrieks in the score. You can sense the dread and isolation, and you really just want the girl to stay put, shut her eyes, and fall asleep between her parents. But she crawls to the TV and the ghostly rotoscoped hand reaches out to her. Even if the effects are dated now, it only adds to the ethereal nature of the scene."

—tickle_bomb

2. A fiery confrontation, The Ritual (2017)

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"When the group's last survivor confronts the demi-god-devil-monstrosity after having survived the whole horrific ordeal as the forest commune burns behind him and the beast itself stares with its hellfire-glowing eyes against a fiery and midnight black backdrop."

—thefirsthovis

3. The sheet ghost, The Conjuring (2013)

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"In The Conjuring, when she is taking the sheets off the wash line and one blows into a ghostly figure. It was haunting."

—rebeccaelizabethp2

4. Pazuzu appears, The Exorcist (1973)

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"She’s backlit in this otherworldly light and a statue of the demon Pazuzu is perched behind her. It’s as beautiful as it is terrifying."

—scottr45c22fee7

5. The Sunken Place, Get Out (2017)

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"The scene is so simple and not outright terrifying, but deeply unnerving."

—izzie14

6. Black Sabbath, Suspiria (2018)

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"The dancing is mesmerizing. The head explosions are shocking and visceral, and the soundtrack sets a melancholy and beautiful tone at the same time."

—jperezmurillo

7. Murder at the pool, The Strangers: Prey at Night (2018)

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"The use of the neon lights and the contrast of the blood is visually stimulating. The music also plays into making this one of the best scenes in a horror movie I have seen in years."

—k42084799a

8. The bear suit and a fire, Midsommar (2019)

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"Basically just all of Midsommar. So much of horror relies on your fear of what could be lurking in the dark, but almost all of Midsommar takes place outside in enduring sunlight. Totally brilliant. But specific scenes would be Dani in the Midsommar queen dress, the group of women all screaming together, and Christian in the bear suit."

—claired12

9. Demon dance in the nightclub, The Neon Demon (2016)

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"The entirety of The Neon Demon is a visual buffet, but the part that stands out most to me is when the girls take the protagonist to the light show. Something about those flashing lights are totally entrancing AND unsettling!"

—jenessa_1022

10. Pennywise and the projector, It Chapter One (2017)

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"The scene in It Chapter One (2017) when they are in the garage going through pictures on a projector and Pennywise came out of the photos and went after Beverly. I watched and replayed it three or four times."

—emilydawe1

11. The Demon King, The Cell (2000)

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"The Cell is visually stunning throughout. The world the serial killer creates in his mind is horrifying and beautiful. I especially like the scene where Vincent D'Onofrio's character descends from his throne and the tapestries connected to his back begin to unfurl as he walks down the stairs."

—caitlinm18

12. Edith and Allan are rescued, Crimson Peak (2015)

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"During the end of Crimson Peak, Edith is running through the snow outside in a long white nightgown. As she does, the red clay underneath the ground that gives the manor its name begins to seep up through the snow, causing her to leave red, bloody-looking footprints behind her and staining the bottom of her gown red. Honestly, the whole movie is gorgeous. Guillermo del Toro is one of the most incredible visual directors out there, but the scene at the end is just so haunting and beautiful."

—mcrivellokhan

13. "Free Bird," The Devil's Rejects (2005)

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"Rob Zombie's finale in Devils Rejects with 'Free Bird' playing and the car with the family going to get killed...ah-maze-balls! The man can do dramatic gore!"

—hollys24

14. The final gathering, The Witch (2015)

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"The last scene of The Witch (or just all of it, really)! So eerie, so upsettingly sensual, so great, so feminist! A great YAS BITCH ending!!"

—cleansheets

15. Escaping the Overlook, The Shining (1980)

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"Everything that happens in the hedge maze. The pitch-perfect white snow, the fog glistening in the lights. It's haunting and atmospheric. Like you can feel the cold."

—niallh459ac7a2b

16. The burning of a sketchbook and a husband, Hereditary (2018)

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Toni Collette's expression going from shock to nothingness as the hot glow of the fire takes over her is mesmerizing to say the least.

— Pablo Valdivia

17. The hedge maze, Doctor Sleep (2019)

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"I'd say the most beautiful part is when Dan pulls Rose into his mind, which turns out to be the iconic Overlook hedge maze...and then the camera zooms up into the air, showing that it essentially stretches into infinity. Just the silent hedge maze in an eternal twilight snowfall for miles and miles, it's absolutely stunning."

—mcrivellokhan

18. The final fight, Us (2019)

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"While the whole movie is fantastic (and super spooky), this scene is both haunting and beautiful. The combination of stunning visuals, choreography, and sound/music is 100% on point, and the meaning behind it all makes this one of my favorite scenes/movies in the horror genre (and in general). I was left in tears, and could not get it out of my head."

—lillianneaurelian

19. Birth in the tub, A Quiet Place (2018)

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"The lighting matched with the tense atmosphere and the decaying wallpaper creates this weird sort of beauty."

—m457a37b78

20. Underwater stalking, The Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)

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"The underwater shots were so breathtaking. It's amazing they could accomplish it in the '50s."

—nonexistant_knight

21. Carousel, Silent Hill: Revelation (2012)

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"I did not like the movie as a whole because the storyline made no sense, but that moment was awesome."

—heatherlaw1988

22. The last sunrise, Interview with the Vampire (1994)

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"I'm a sucker for period horror films. I think the scene where Louis sees his last sunrise before becoming a vampire is so beautiful and atmospheric. It's a perfect distillation of Louis's melancholic character and the dark beauty of the Louisiana bayous together."

—a48b53e4ef

23. The canoe, Friday the 13th (1980)

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"The ripples in the water, the music, the serenity. Right before Jason comes out of the water, it’s just a relaxing image."

—honeybrunette09

24. Michael Myers lifts a car, Halloween II (1981)

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"Halloween II is a cinematography masterpiece as a whole, but to be specific, there’s a scene where Michael is lifting a car and the lighting is so beautiful, while also highlighting the terrifying aspect of the scene."

—aljr02

25. The dog chase, The Thing (1982)

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"The opening to The Thing when the Norwegians are flying through the Antarctic tundra trying to shoot the dog."

—caitlinm18

26. The wedding party, The Company of Wolves (1984)

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"The Company of Wolves (1984) is visually stunning. Gothic, fantasy, horror all rolled into one. The wedding party is pretty amazing to watch. As is the transformation into a wolf."

—takerbobpooh

27. The escape, The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

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"It's not exactly a horror movie, but the reveal in The Silence of the Lambs in which we discover that Hannibal disemboweled and crucified the cop who was guarding him is breathtaking."

—zooter

28. And finally, Leatherface basking in the early morning sun, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

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I'm a sucker for a lens flare, and nothing could make the warm glow of the sun as terrifying as Leatherface does.

— Pablo Valdivia

Now it's your turn! Do you have any favorite horror movie scenes that are visually a masterpiece? Let us know!